Sandbag: The Great Coal Collapse of 2019

Report • Nikolay Chavdarov • 20 August 2019

The authors of the report that in the first half of 2019, coal-based electricity production in Europe has dropped by 19% compared to the first half of 2018. In absolute numbers, these are 50 TWh, which have been replaced by renewable energy sources. (RES). Most significant is the decline in those countries that are promoting the development of wind and solar energy and are planning a phased out of coal.

In particular, in Germany, the abandonment of coal capacity has already reached 22%, and as the data show, in absolute terms, this is the largest decline in the entire EU. As is known recently, German energy company RWE has also announced that it will no longer invest in new coal-fired power plants. In Ireland, the decline in coal capacity is 79%.

Rising carbon prices are helping to reduce the output of coal-fired power plants. Coal power has also fallen in Poland, which historically relies on coal in electricity. Electricity production from coal power has grown in only two countries - Bulgaria and Slovenia.